End of school year fun

Sam with his teacher Ms. Bedortha--who is getting married for the first time in August

Well the kids have officially finished their school year--so this week they got to stay home while mom and dad went to school. No fair!

Sydney with her friends at field day

The school year ended with a flurry of activities. The kids had a gymnastics program, field day, end of school year parties and lots of fun. Of course with the end of the school year also comes many goodbyes as teachers and students with their families move on to new places.

sam at soccer practice

When we did our missionary training 3 years ago, one of the things we focused on was how to do good-byes. Up until then I had never really thought of it--and as we did the training I was only thinking about our goodbyes to our families as we left for Malawi. But we are coming to realize the life of a missionary is full of goodbyes and transitions. And I don't think that gets any easier with time. Especially for me, who cries at the drop of a hat.
As we left Malawi a year ago--Sydney would say to me, "mom, are you crying again?" You need to add your own rolling of the eyes to get the full effect. Now my tears has become the big joke of the family. But with each transition their are not only goodbyes--but hellos. We look forward to the new people we will meet and the experiences we will have when we arrive in Ecuador while we treasure the imprints that people have made and are making on our lives through every part of this journey.

A preview of things to come: Heather and Sydney are learning and practicing the cultural dance of Costa Rica for a holiday presentation in July. More pics to come. Sydney and the girls learning cultural dancing in Costa Rica.